College Baseball Countdown: 6 Days to Go- Scott Politz

Yale ace Scott Politz is back for another season in 2018 after helping the Bulldogs to a regional in 2017, and that’s tough news for the rest of the Ivy League.

Photo Credit: YaleBulldogs.com

The righty from Austin, Texas, was outstanding for Yale in 2017, going 11-2 with a 3.23 ERA. In 92 innings, he struck out 75 and walked just 21 on the way to being named First Team All-Ivy League for the second year in a row. To cap things off, he threw a gem in Yale’s regional opener against Nebraska. In a 5-1 win over the Cornhuskers, he threw a complete game, giving up six hits and one run with four walks and six strikeouts. That was the start of an impressive run for the Bulldogs in the Corvallis Regional, as they went on to defeat Holy Cross in an elimination game later in the weekend to advance to an unexpected regional final against host Oregon State.

Of course, the 2017 season is just the most recent example of Politz’s excellence, but it actually began with his freshman season in 2016. He appeared in 13 games, 11 of which were starts, going 6-3 with a 3.64 ERA. In 76.2 innings, he struck out 48 and walked 14 to earn him his first nod as a First Team All-Ivy League member.

Coming into this, his junior season, Politz has to be at the top of any list of pitchers vying to win the Ivy League Pitcher of the Year award. Last season’s winner, Dartmouth’s Beau Sulser, graduated, as did every other starting pitcher listed as First or Second Team All-Ivy League.

Dartmouth, always a challenger at the top of the league, and Columbia, which features a physical lineup led by the dynamic Randell Kanemaru, will have something to say about which program represents the Ivy League in a regional in 2018, but if that honor goes to Yale again, you can bet that Politz had a big role in that success and that the three other teams in their regional dread the thought of facing off with the battle-tested hurler.

About the Author

Growing up in Houston, Joe Healy was introduced to college baseball at a young age, and it was love at first sight. Like most good love stories, that love has only grown throughout the years. When he's not at the ballpark, he enjoys tacos, college football during the fall, and the spectacle that is American politics. He holds a B.A. in Political Science from Sam Houston State University and a Master's in Public Administration from Southern Illinois University- Edwardsville.